TO AND FROM THE FALKLAND ISLANDS
We managed to hold onto the good weather for a few more days whilst
we crossed from Montevideo to the Falkland Islands, enjoying the last of
the sunshine, and we arrived at Stanley at 09:00 on the 17th October 2000
to a clear but blustery day.

Stanley is home for the ship, as she is registered in the Falkland Islands,
as it is for some of the crew, so there were quite a few to greet us at
the dockside. The three days in Stanley were busy with loading large ammounts
of cargo bound for South Georgia, Bird Island and Signy. We also said Goodbye
to the SOC team, Robin and Margaret, and their digital camera that has
so far produced many of the web photos - they and "the camera" will be
sorely missed, and I hope the photos from now on will be up to scratch.
For the lucky few, the couple of days at Stanley gave a chance to get out
and about and see some of the sites and wildlife.

It was also time for the new personnel to arrive, a day or so late due
to a few delays of the Tristar. Now on board we have the pleasure of Dr Richard (Dick)
Laws FRS, Director of the British Antarctic Survey from 1973 - 1987, who has
spent a lot of time in Antarctica, which he first visited back in 1947.
Also onboard are the scientists and personnel for Bird Island, Signy, and
South Georgia, and the contractors for the South Georgia Project. Although
there are a few planned scientific projects on this trip the main role
of the ship is logistical.

We left Stanley as scheduled at 09:30 on Friday 20th October. Soon after
leaving the dock we anchored for a safety drill including launching the
starboard lifeboat. This involves donning life jackets, being lowered down
in the boat, going for a quick spin around, and then returning back and
climbing up onto the ship via a rope ladder, as seen below in the photos.

Dick Laws safely arriving back on deck

Graham climbing the rope ladder closely watched by Kelvin and Colin

After a successful safety drill it was time to take the cargo tender
and the rescue boat out for a quick spin to make certain everything was
functioning prior to heading south.

I managed to get a ride in the rescue
boat and then got soaked with "warm" Falkland Island Sea, but it was worth
it for the thrill. The cargo tender is vital for doing the Bird Island
relief and so it is very important to know that all is in working order
before we leave the Falklands.

Since leaving Stanley, the weather has changed, and we all watch as
the barometer reading steadily but persistently drops. Venturing outside
is no longer tempting and the ship was hove to for the first, but probably
not the last, time, which happens in winds of force 9 to 10. This
morning, Sunday, we crossed the Antarctic Convergence and we have seen
the sea temperature drop quite significantly to a chilly 2.7 degrees.

NO SCIENCE THIS WEEK
In it's place are the most up to date Ice Analysis maps for the Bellinghausen
west and east regions.

Bellinghausen west

Bellinghausen east

These two maps show the state of the ice in the regions that we are
hoping to navigate in the next few months. Bellinghausen west map shows
the Antarctic Peninsular which is white, we can see that Rothera on Adelaide
Island is presently surrounded by 9-10 tenths ice. The Bellinghausen east
map shows us the South Orkney Islands where Signy base is located, we are
hoping to do the Signy relief in a few weeks time. The South Orkneys are
shown by the black dot in the middle of the yellow region labelled 'D', signifying
that at present there is 4-6 tenths ice surrounding the area.